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Eastern Europe: Best ads off the old bloc

Eastern European creatives reveal their favourite ads to Maria Esposito.

July 13, 2007

How long?

5-7 minutes

Agencies from Eastern Europe rarely return from Cannes with a cupboard
full of silverware. TBWA\Warsaw, which last year picked up a Young
Creatives gold Lion on the Cote d'Azur, is still the exception rather
than the rule. Just five Lions went back to Eastern Europe this year,
but, with just a handful of years in the business, ad markets across the
region are being boosted by a new generation of talent.

"The level of creative work has changed in recent years," Natalia
Smelova, the creative director at the ad agency Nebo in St Petersburg,
says. "Creative people have become more experienced and big network
clients are giving them the opportunity to work with Western
specialists, so the visual part of Russian ads is getting more
professional."

Lars Killi, the executive creative director at McCann Erickson Prague,
believes that the ad industry, particularly in the Czech Republic, is
now seeing the benefits of better, more accessible schooling and
training. "It's all down to education," he says. "Creative teams used to
be made up of artists. They had no marketing skills or knowledge of the
business. Now, we have skilled, professional creatives, and they are
going to take over the market."

While this new wave of talent is beginning to make its mark, the ad
industry in Eastern Europe is still lagging behind Western Europe. "They
are at the beginning of the curve, identifying ideas and developing them
for TV, whereas the West is moving more towards other digital
technologies," Pietro Leone, the chief executive of Grey Global Group
for Central and Eastern Europe, Italy and Turkey, says. "When you look
at the output of Eastern Europe, limitations in budget drives
limitations in the quality of the execution, so even a good idea gets
lost."

Budgets are not the only factor to cramp the style of an Eastern
European campaign. "There isn't a history of brand imagery," William
Eccleshare, the chairman and chief executive of BBDO Europe, says. "Ads
tend to be more direct and less image-based than perhaps we would
expect, simply because there is less familiarity. At the moment, there
is still a recognition that consumer familiarity with brands and the
language of brands is less pronounced, so you need a different style of
campaign."

Cautious executives are also putting the brakes on creatives who pitch
daring ideas. "It is becoming more complicated to create strong ideas
and to sell them to clients," Smelova says. "There is a lack of good
briefs with accurate or believable consumer insights. Marketing
directors and brand managers have also been avoiding risky creative
ideas in the past few years. To my mind, they think more about their own
careers than about brand building, so they want to have 'safe options'
in creative."

With such financial and creative restrictions in place, it remains to be
seen if Eastern Europe's new generation of talent can give the more
established ad markets a run for their money come awards time.

CZECH PARALYMPIC TEAM

Agency: MARK BBDO Prague, Czech Republic

Exposure: Print

"You are always looking for work with a sound international standard,
and this ad to support the Czech Paralympic Team has it. It is very
simple. It shows an ancient statue with missing limbs. That's it, but
it's very striking because of that. You might want to convey 16
different messages, but people will only ever remember one. We always
say that you have to be single-minded with ads, and I think this one
is.

"The team behind the ad (Hajji Radouane Moussa and Jan Riedl) was
working for BBDO at the time. I had to hire them after seeing this. When
you see talent, you have to grab it.

"They are part of the first generation which has grown up in a
professional environment. They have been to school and been given the
same opportunities as everyone else in Europe. These guys are part of
the new talent emerging. This ad proves that."

"The ad is for a new tram, the Combino, in Budapest. The tram is
extremely long, and Well took a landscape picture of it. It wouldn't fit
into a citilite, so they folded it in half. That's the first time that
has been done here. The ad was spot-on. What can you say about the tram
apart from that it's bloody long? You can't really advertise trams.
Everyone knows they are there on the street, but this ad is just a
charming reminder.

"A lot of outdoor advertising in Hungary is extremely busy and is used
for promotions. People try to put a lot of information into outdoor ads,
which is often useless. This ad doesn't do that, so it stands out. It's
a plain photograph on a plain black-and-white background. That's a brave
thing to do because you rarely see anything like this in Hungary."

- Andras Simon, creative director, BBDO Budapest, Hungary

MAGGI

Agency: McCann Erickson Bucharest, Romania

Exposure: Print

"The Maggi campaign is simple and tight. It's the kind of advertising
that makes me heave a sigh of relief. In a category where the big logo
rules, McCann Erickson has done a wonderful job creating an idea that
has won awards the world over, from the Golden Drum in Portoroz, to the
New York Festivals, to Epica.

"With a smart and simple strategy, built on a relevant insight, the work
hits the core of how differently the world would spin if women spent
less time in the kitchen. It is one of the few Maggi campaigns
originated in Romania, if not the only one.

"The campaign moves on from the brand's traditional advertising, which
centres on the iconic mother who does everything for her family. This
execution is a 'wake-up call' to Romanian women to take time out and
explore all that life has to offer.

"While the ads may target Cosmo women rather than the broad Maggi
audience, they focus on the brand's core family values and the central
role of women. Romanian society is changing, as are female consumers.
The campaign reflects this social shift and strikes a chord."

- Claudiu Dobrita, creative director, Grey Bucharest, Romania

TELE2

Agency: Partizan Moscow, Russia

Exposure: National TV, print

"This series of 'mafia-style' TV commercials and print ads were made by
Partizan and were produced by Guerrilla Shots Productions for the
Russian branch of the mobile phone company Tele2.

"I'm not sure these TV commercials are based on a strong creative idea,
but I like the main characters - called Tony Bonelli, Sonny Pudding and
Don - and the black humour in the stories. I also like the shooting
style, which is based on films such as The Godfather and Lock, Stock and
Two Smoking Barrels.

"Originally, the agency created a series of stories where a young mafia
guy, Tony Bonelli, hasn't phoned his Don because calls on his mobile
phone were too expensive. In every story, Bonelli is punished for his
mistake by his friends Sonny Pudding and Don. The campaign's headline -
Call 'em all! - is perfect.

"In 2007, Tele2 and Partizan have been developing their mafia stories,
and the new campaign sees Bonelli switch to Tele2. He is now a telephone
maniac and is constantly calling friends. The agency and the production
company started using the style of films such as Snatch and Revolver,
which is more dynamic. The director was the American Siraj Jhaveri, who
is well-known in Russia. Tony Mitchell was the director of
photography."

"Russian politicians are known for travelling abroad and getting wasted.
Even the late former president Boris Yeltsin was notorious for partying
hard. This ad uses that idea. A politician's plane lands at an airport
while everyone waits for him to come out. He doesn't, however, because
the vodka on board is so good.

"The ad industry rated this ad, and it won a lot of prizes at the Kiev,
Moscow and Golden Hammer festivals.

"It is particularly impressive because it combines the essential
ingredients needed for a good ad. It uses the right context and insight
and then dramatises them. The execution is also good.

"The ad is not a masterpiece, but the idea is delivered as it should be.
The directing doesn't stand out, but, like IT managers, if you don't see
them, then it means everything is OK.

"It is one continuous shot without any cuts, which means the execution
was simple. Simplicity always rules."

- Janis Grivins, creative director, Taivas Ogilvy Riga, Latvia

EESTI STATOIL

Agency: Kontuur Leo Burnett Tallinn, Estonia

Exposure: TV

"I like the unexpected element in this ad. When you first see it, you
are not sure what it is all about. You see a bird flying into a hole.
When you see it a second time, you already know that the hole is the
exhaust pipe for a car. You don't have to see it a million times to
remember it.

"It's simple enough to be understood internationally, yet it tells you
the product's benefits very clearly. Estonians often like to see local
flavour and language in ads, but this one is simple enough to be
understood in different countries.

"This ad stood out on air because banks and mobile phone companies have
a tendency to make lifestyle ads here. They are shot abroad with happy
people and are very expensive, but you can't tell them apart. They are
generally very fancy, but you can't see the point of them. In this ad,
the idea is very effective and straightforward."